Matthew Morrison
Morrison at a premiere party of Glee in 2009
Born	Matthew James Morrison (1978-10-30) October 30, 1978 (age 33) Fort Ord, California, U.S.
Other names	Matt Morrison
Occupation	Actor, director, musician, singer-songwriter
Years active	1999–present

Matthew James Morrison (born October 30, 1978) is an American actor, dancer, musician, and singer-songwriter. He is best known for starring in multiple Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, including his portrayal of Link Larkin in Hairspray on Broadway, and most notably for his Emmy and Golden Globe nominated role as Will Schuester on the Fox television show Glee (2009–present). He has also received a Satellite Award for this role.

Early life[link]

Matthew Morrison was born in Fort Ord, California, and raised in Orange County, and is of Scottish heritage.^[1] He was part of the Collaborative Arts Project 21 (CAP21) and the Orange County High School of the Arts, while at the Los Alamitos High School campus. While in high school, he did a musical with actress Jodie Sweetin.^[2] He attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts for two years before dropping out and joining the Broadway adaptation of Footloose.^[3]

By freshman year of college Morrison already was a regular performer on Broadway. He states in Details "There were all these beautiful, beautiful dancers. As a straight guy I had some room. There were the shared interests in singing and dancing, and I always find dancing with someone very erotic and sexual. I definitely hooked up with a lot of girls when I was a young guy on Broadway. It was fun, I guess. Very joyous and free."^[4]

Career[link]

Morrison's career began when he made his musical theatre debut on Broadway in the musical version of Footloose, followed by a revival of The Rocky Horror Show in 2002. His big break came, however, when he landed the role of Link Larkin in the Broadway production of John Waters', Hairspray. After performing in the role for some time, he started working in television, guest-starring on shows such as Ghost Whisperer, Numb3rs, CSI: Miami and Hack. He also had small roles in films such as Marci X, Primary Colors, Music and Lyrics, and Simply Funk. He followed up these performances by performing the role of Sir Harry in the ABC-TV production of Once Upon a Mattress, starring Tracey Ullman and Carol Burnett.

Morrison with Glee co-star Jane Lynch.

In 2001, Morrison was recruited to complete the quartet for the band LMNT. He was replaced instead by Jonas Persch by the time their first album was released. He commented in an interview about his experience in the boy band by remarking, "It was the worst year of my life. You know when you're a performer and you're out there on stage and you're embarrassed that you're doing something wrong. It was pretty bad." Matthew Morrison also was a member of Buena Park Youth theater. Located at Buena Park ^[5]

Morrison starred in the Original Cast of the musical Hairspray as Link Larkin from its opening in 2002 through January 2004.^[6]

In 2005 Morrison changed gears, playing the role of Fabrizio Nacarelli in Adam Guettel's The Light in the Piazza.^[6] He was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance.^[7] He left the show August 28, 2005.^[7]

Morrison joined the cast of the CBS soap opera, As the World Turns, as Adam Munson on October 24, 2006,^[8] but left abruptly soon after due to a "scheduling conflict," last airing on the soap on November 27.

Morrison appeared in a benefit performance celebrating Andrew Lippa, and the 25th Anniversary of the performing troupe 'The Kids in the Hall' at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa, California in December 2006. The performance benefited The California Conservatory of the Arts, a non-profit arts education organization focusing on pre-professional training for young students, grades six through twelve, in Orange County, California.

He earned a Drama Desk Nomination for his role in the Off Broadway show 10 Million Miles which ran at the Atlantic Theater Company in 2007. That same year he appeared in two films: Dan in Real Life, followed by Music and Lyrics as Cora Corman's manager.

In 2008 he played Lieutenant Cable in a Lincoln Center production of the musical South Pacific. He left the production at the end of 2008 and in early 2009 returned to California to shoot the first season of Glee.^[9]

Morrison plays Will Schuester in the Fox Broadcasting television series Glee, which had its television preview on May 19, 2009. He resumed his role in the show as the series premiered on September 9, 2009. He plays a high school Spanish teacher who takes on the task of restoring the school's glee club to its former glory. Morrison also appeared in the show's second season. He returned for the third season, which premiered on September 20, 2011.^[10] He will be making his directorial debut in the third season's ninth episode.

In addition on January 14, 2010, it was announced that Morrison signed a solo record deal with Mercury Records. His first studio album was released on May 10, 2011. Morrison duets with Elton John on "a medley of 'Mona Lisas and Madhatters' going into 'Rocket Man'".^[11] His first single, "Summer Rain", premiered on Ryan Seacrest's website on February 28, 2011.^[12] Additionally, a duet of "Over the Rainbow" with Gwyneth Paltrow appears on the self-titled album.^[13]

On June 16, 2010, Morrison joined Leona Lewis — appearing at London's O2 Arena as part of her world tour — for a one-off performance to sing "Over the Rainbow". Morrison was on the cover of the June 2011 issue of MetroSource.

(l-r) LGBT activist, Kevin Norte, Morrison, and Norte's partner, Don, at P-FLAG 2010's Charitable Event fundraiser at the London Hotel, West Hollywood, California.

In March 2012, Morrison was featured in a performance of Dustin Lance Black's play, '8' — a staged reenactment of the federal trial that overturned California's Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage — as Paul Katami.^[14] The production was held at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and broadcast on YouTube to raise money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights.^[15][16]

Awards and nominations[link]

• Screen Actors Guild Awards Nominated - 2010 Best Performance by an Ensemble in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical (Glee)
• Primetime Emmy Awards^[17] Nomination - 2010 Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Glee)
• Golden Globe Awards Nomination - 2010 Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical (Glee)
• Satellite Awards Nomination - 2010 Best Actor in a Series, Comedy or Musical (Glee)
• Teen Choice Awards Nomination - 2010 Choice Male Scene Stealer
• Golden Globe Awards Nomination - 2009 Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical (Glee)
• Satellite Awards Winner - 2009 Best Actor in a Series, Comedy or Musical (Glee)
• Screen Actors Guild Awards Winner - 2009 Best Performance by an Ensemble in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical (Glee)
• Drama Desk Awards Nomination - 2008 Outstanding Actor in a Musical (10 Million Miles)
• Tony Awards Nomination - 2005 Best Featured Actor in a Musical (The Light in the Piazza)
• Outer Critics Circle Awards Nomination - 2005 Best Featured Actor in a Musical (The Light in the Piazza)
• Drama Desk Awards Nomination - 2005 Outstanding Actor in a Musical (The Light in the Piazza)
• Outer Critics Circle Awards Nomination - 2003 Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Hairspray)

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Singles[link]

Filmography[link]

Source:^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

Morrison became engaged to actress Chrishell Stause on December 9, 2006. Their relationship ended in 2007, less than a year into the engagement. ^[23]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Matthew Morrison

• Official website
• Matthew Morrison at Allmusic
• Matthew Morrison at the Internet Movie Database
• Matthew Morrison at the Internet Broadway Database
• Matthew Morrison on Twitter
• Matthew Morrison at Emmys.com

Matthew may refer to:

• Matthew (name), the given name
• Matthew (surname)
• Matthew (ship), the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 from Bristol to North America
• Matthew (album), an album by rapper Kool Keith

In Christianity:

• Saint Matthew the Evangelist, one of the apostles of Jesus
• Gospel of Matthew, a book of the Bible

See also[link]

• Matt (given name), the diminutive form of Matthew
• Matthews (surname)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Lea Michele
Lea Michele at the 2010 Time 100.
Born	Lea Michele Sarfati (1986-08-29) August 29, 1986 (age 25) The Bronx, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Actress, singer
Years active	1995–present

Lea Michele Sarfati (born August 29, 1986),^[1] known professionally as Lea Michele, is an American actress and singer. Michele began working professionally as a child actress on Broadway in productions such as Ragtime and Les Misérables. She originated the role of Wendla in the musical Spring Awakening and currently plays Rachel Berry in the Fox television series Glee and made her film debut in New Year's Eve starring alongside Ashton Kutcher. Michele performs in the soprano range.^[2]

Early life[link]

Michele was born in the Bronx, New York City. She is the only daughter of Edith, a nurse, and Marc Sarfati, a delicatessen owner.^[1] Her mother is Italian American and Roman Catholic, while her father is a Spanish Sephardic Jew.^[3][4] Michele was raised Catholic, and has stated that her father "gladly" attends church with her and her mother.^[5][6] She grew up in Tenafly, New Jersey. She attended Rockland Country Day School^[7] for elementary school in New York and then Tenafly High School.^[5][8] Michele was home schooled one year while working in Toronto, Ontario on Ragtime. She attended Stagedoor Manor in the Catskills, a center for performing arts training.^[9] She was then later accepted to the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, but opted instead to continue working professionally on the stage.^[10][11]

Michele adopted her stage name at an early age; when she went on her first audition, she gave her name as "Lea Michele," and has used it ever since. She has stated that she changed it because she was teased about the pronunciation of her last name.^[12]

Career[link]

Stage roles[link]

Michele made her Broadway debut in 1995, as a replacement in the role of Young Cosette in Les Misérables.^[13][14] This was followed by the role of Tateh's daughter, the Little Girl, in the 1998 original Broadway cast of Ragtime.^[14][15] In 2004, Michele played Sphritze in the Broadway revival of the musical Fiddler on the Roof.^[14][16] She also sang on the 2004 Broadway revival cast recording of Fiddler on the Roof.^[17]

Michele at the Glee premiere party, May 2009

She played the role of Wendla in Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik's musical version of Spring Awakening, starring in early workshops and Off-Broadway and finally originating the role in the Broadway production in 2006 at the age of 20.^[18] Around the same time that the show was set to go to Broadway, she was offered the role of Eponine in the Broadway revival of Les Misérables.^[19] She elected to remain with Spring Awakening, which debuted on Broadway in December 2006. She was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for her performance in Spring Awakening in the category of Outstanding Actress in a Musical.^[20]

On May 18, 2008, Michele left Spring Awakening with her co-star Jonathan Groff. She performed in a reading of Sheik and Sater's new musical, Nero, in July 2008 at Vassar College.^[21] She portrayed Eponine in the Hollywood Bowl's Les Misérables concert in August 2008.^[22]

Film, television, and other work[link]

Michele stars in the Fox television series Glee, where she plays the star singer of a high school glee club, Rachel Berry. She has won a Screen Actors Guild Award for an outstanding ensemble performance^[23] and the 2009 Satellite Award for best actress.^[24] Michele received the People's Choice award of Best Actress in a Comedy in 2012.^[25] She also received nominations for an Emmy Award,^[26] two nominations for a Golden Globe Award, and Teen Choice Award for her performance in the role.^[27] In December 2010 Lea Michele received Billboard's First-Ever Triple Threat Award.^[28] Several of her solo covers have reached the top 40 on the US Billboard Hot 100, including "Gives You Hell" by The All-American Rejects, "The Only Exception" by Paramore, "Firework" by Katy Perry, "Without You" by David Guetta feat. Usher, and the original song "Get It Right". Michele is the featured lead singer in 14 of the top 25 selling Glee songs as of Feb. 2012. Also as of Feb. 2012, over 70 songs featuring Michele as a lead have reached the Billboard charts, more than any other cast member.^[28]

Michele was included in TIME magazine's 2010 list of the 100 Most Influential People In the World.^[29] FHM named her No.7 on 2010 Sexiest Women List.^[30] Michele was named to People Magazine's Best Dressed List of 2010 as "The Newbie"^[31] and she was voted "2010 Most Stylish Star" by E! Online.^[32] She was ranked 28th on the Maxim 2011 Hot 100.^[33] She was number 10 on the AfterEllen hot 100 list for 2011.^[34] Michele ranked 14th on the 2012 Maxim Hot 100. ^[35] Women's Health Magazine placed Lea Michele as the 3rd Best 2012 Summer Bodies. ^[36]

In 2010, Michele joined the cast of the animated film Dorothy of Oz,^[37] voicing the lead role of Dorothy Gale.^[38] She filmed a role in Garry Marshall's romantic comedy New Year's Eve, which was released in 2011.^[39]

Before Super Bowl XLV, on February 6, 2011, she performed "America the Beautiful" with the Air Force Tops In Blue.^[40]

Candie's anounced in 2012 that Lea will be the new spokesperson for their clothing/footwear brand.^[41]

Charities[link]

Michele is active in charities for gay rights and animal rights. In 2008, Michele was a part of the PETA ad campaign "Buck Cruelty! Say No to Horse-Drawn Carriage Rides".^[42] In April 2010, Michele appeared in a PSA for PETA speaking out against fur clothing.^[43] In September 2010, Michele was honored by PETA for her work for animals.^[44]

In the support of gay rights, Michele performed at the Human Rights Campaign Dinner in November 2009.^[45][46] In the same month, Michele and Jonathan Groff performed for True Colors Cabaret, a fundraiser in support of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality.^[47]

In 2008, Michele performed at a benefit concert, "Alive in the World",^[48] to aid the Twin Towers Orphan Fund. Michele has also been active with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. For Broadway Cares, Michele has participated in Broadway Barks, Broadway Bares, The Easter Bonnet Competition and The Flea Market and Grand Auction.^[49]

In October 2010, Michele performed at a benefit concert for The Painted Turtle. The concert celebrated the 35th anniversary of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, with Michele playing the lead role of Janet Weiss for the benefit.^[50] In February 2011, she performed for The Grammys' MusiCares Benefit in Los Angeles CA.^[51] In April 2012 performs for The Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation (JCCF) at UCLA, 17th annual signature fundraiser, Taste for a Cure.^[52]

Credits[link]

Michele at the 38th People's Choice Awards, Red Carpet 2012

Broadway

• Les Misérables as Young Cosette (1995–96)
• Ragtime as the Little Girl (1998–99)
• Fiddler on the Roof as Shprintze and Chava (2004–05)
• Spring Awakening as Wendla (2006–08)

Readings and workshops

• Burt Bacharach and Steven Sater collaboration (November 2009)^[53]
• Nero as Octavia (July 2008)^[54]
• Samson and Delilah as Delilah^[55]
• King as Anisette^[55]
• Wuthering Heights as Lucy^[55]
• Hot and Sweet as Naleen (September 2006)^[56]
• Spring Awakening as Wendla – Roundabout Theatre Company (2000 and June 2001)^[57]

Concerts and events

• "Broadway Eastern Bonnet" 2004 benefit performance as Sphrintze (with casts of Avenue Q and Fiddler on the Roof)
• Spring Awakening as Wendla – Lincoln Center (February 2005)
• Unsung 2007: 'Tis The Season To Be Naughty – Lucille Lortel Theater, New York (December 2007)^[58]
• Alive in the World, benefit concert – as Phoebe (January 2008)^[48]
• "Broadway Eastern Bonnet" 2008 benefit performance as Wendla (with cast of Spring Awakening)
• Feinstein's (February 2008 and April 2008)^[59]
• Flopz n' cutz Concert with Landon Beard, Joe's Pub (April 2008) ^[60]
• Les Misérables Concert as Eponine at the Hollywood Bowl (August 2008)^[55]
• Upright Cabaret (August 2008)^[61]
• Broadway Chance Style: Up Close & Personal (September 2008)^[62]
• Spring Awakening Holiday Benefit Concert – Joe's Pub (December 2008)^[63]
• Human Rights Campaign Dinner, performer (November 2009).^[45]
• True Colors Benefit with Jonathan Groff (November 2009)^[47]
• Glee Live! In Concert! as Rachel Berry; Phoenix, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York City (May 2010)
• Glee TV Academy Event at the Music Box, Los Angeles (July 27, 2010)
• Rocky Horror Picture Show 35th Anniversary To Benefit The Painted Turtle, as Janet Weiss, Los Angeles (October 2010)^[64]
• Super Bowl XLV – as performer ("America the Beautiful") Dallas, Texas (February 2011)^[65]
• MusiCares Person of the Year tribute honoring Barbra Streisand, performer, Los Angeles (February 2011)^[51]
• Glee Live! In Concert! as Rachel Berry; 22 cities, 40 shows, 4 countries: US, Canada, England, Ireland (May–July 2011)
• The Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation (JCCF) at UCLA, 17th annual signature fundraiser, Taste for a Cure. April 2012 ^[52]

Other projects

• Ragtime as Little Girl, Toronto Centre for the Arts, Toronto, Ontario (1997)
• The Diary of Anne Frank as Anne Frank, Washington, D.C. (2005)^[66]
• Spring Awakening as Wendla, Atlantic Theatre Company, off Broadway (May–August 2006)
• Dove commercials as spokesperson (2010)^[67]
• Chevrolet commercial, as Rachel Berry: Glee Super Bowl commercial (February 2011)^[68]
• Nike workout application as spokesperson (2011)^[69]
• HP TouchPad commercial (2011)^[70]
• Candies as spokesperson (2012) ^[71]

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

Television[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

Discography[link]

• Ragtime: Original Cast Recording (1998)
• Fiddler on the Roof: Revival Cast Recording (2004)
• Spring Awakening: Original Cast Recording Grammy Award winner – Best Cast Recording (2006)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lea Michele

• Lea Michele at the Internet Movie Database
• Lea Michele at the Internet Broadway Database
• Lea Michele at PlaybillVault.com
• Lea Michele at Emmys.com

Leona Lewis
Lewis at the 2009 American Music Awards
Background information
Birth name	Leona Louise Lewis
Born	(1985-04-03) 3 April 1985 (age 27) Islington, London, England, UK
Genres	Pop, R&B
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, recording artist
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Syco, J, RCA
Website	leonalewismusic.co.uk

Leona Louise Lewis (born 3 April 1985) is a British singer and songwriter.^[1] Lewis came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor.

Lewis has released two albums to date, Spirit and Echo, in 2007 and 2009 respectively. A multi-platinum selling artist and three-time Grammy Award nominee, her most successful single, "Bleeding Love", reached number one in over thirty countries around the world, and was the best-selling single worldwide in 2008.^[2] Other notable singles include "Better in Time", "Happy" and "I Got You". She was proclaimed 'Top New Artist' by Billboard magazine in 2008.

Lewis's debut tour, The Labyrinth, took place in 2010, and her third album, Glassheart, is scheduled for release in 2012. It was preceded by "Collide", a single from the album, which became her seventh top-five hit in the United Kingdom. Lewis's net worth was estimated at £12 million in April 2012.^[3]

Early life[link]

Lewis was born in the London Borough of Islington, to Aural Josiah "Joe" Lewis of Afro-Guyanese descent, and Maria Lewis of Welsh, Irish, and Italian descent.^[1][4][5] Her parents enrolled her at the Sylvia Young Theatre School. From there she attended the Italia Conti Academy and the BRIT School, where she learned to play instruments, such as the guitar and piano, in the hope of becoming a singer-songwriter.^[6][7] Lewis wrote her first full-length song at the age of 12.^[8] She initially trained in opera, but went on to singing jazz and blues, eventually leading to popular music, citing Minnie Riperton, Eva Cassidy and Stevie Wonder as her main influences.^[5] After leaving the BRIT School at 17, following a year abroad in Boston, Massachusetts in a transfer program,^[5] she took a number of jobs to fund studio time,^[9] recording a demo album called Twilight.^[10] The album, almost exclusively comprising her own compositions, was recorded under Spiral Music, a production company based in Fulham. "I tried to secure a record deal by doing things my own way. I worked very hard but I never managed to land a contract", said Lewis.^[11] Other demos were recorded under licence from UEG Entertainment, later included on an album called Best Kept Secret.^[12] None of Lewis's demos brought her significant attention, however, and she considered taking a hiatus from her music career to attend university. Then her boyfriend persuaded her to enter The X Factor which subsequently severed her connections with UEG.^[13]

Music career[link]

[edit] 2006: The X Factor

Lewis at the London premiere for Flushed Away, November 2006

Lewis auditioned for the third series of The X Factor in 2006, singing "Over the Rainbow". She was mentored by Simon Cowell and was announced the winner on 16 December 2006, winning a £1 million recording contract.^[14]

Her debut single, a cover of Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This", was released on CD on 20 December 2006, and was available as a digital download from midnight on 17 December. It broke a world record after it was downloaded 50,000 times in thirty minutes.^[15] On 24 December, "A Moment Like This" was crowned the 2006 UK Christmas number-one single, having sold 571,253 copies, outselling the rest of the Top 40's sales combined.^[16] The single became the most downloaded song in 2006; it stayed at No. 1 for four weeks and stayed at the top spot in the Irish Singles Chart for six weeks.^[17]

[edit] 2007–09: Spirit and international breakthrough

In February 2007 Lewis signed a £5 million (US$9.7 million) five-album contract in the United States with Clive Davis's record label, J Records,^[18] and showcased for several American music executives.^[18][19][20] A press release described how Cowell and Davis would work together in a "first-of-its-kind" partnership on both the song and producer selection for Lewis's debut album, entitled Spirit.^[21] Lewis recorded tracks for the album in London, Miami, Los Angeles, New York City, and Atlanta,^[22] where she worked with several songwriters and record producers including Dallas Austin, Walter Afanasieff, Salaam Remi,^[23] Steve Mac,^[24] Stargate^[25] and Ne-Yo.^[26] It was released in November 2007 and entered both the Irish Albums Chart and the UK Albums Chart at number one, becoming the fastest-selling debut album in both countries, and the United Kingdom's fourth fastest selling album of all time.^[27][28][29] It was released in several other nations in January 2008, and went to number one in New Zealand, Australia, Austria, Germany, South Africa and Switzerland.^[30] Two more tracks were recorded in 2008 for the US release of the album: "Forgive Me", produced by Akon, and "Misses Glass", produced by Madd Scientist.^[31] It was released in the United States in April 2008 and entered the Billboard 200 at No. 1, making Lewis the first British artist to reach number one with a debut album.^[32] A special edition of Spirit was re-released in November 2008 in Europe, including the songs "Forgive Me", "Misses Glass" and a cover of the Snow Patrol song "Run". The album again went to number one in the UK Albums Chart. To date the album has sold over 6.5 million copies worldwide^[33] and has a 9× platinum certification in the UK.^[34]

Lewis performing at the Clive Davis Pre Grammy Gala in 2009

Lewis's second single, "Bleeding Love", produced by Ryan Tedder and written by Tedder and Jesse McCartney, was released in October 2007 in the UK, where it sold 218,805 copies in its first week, giving it the biggest first-week sales of 2007 to date.^[35][36] It entered the UK Singles Chart at number one, where it stayed for seven weeks,^[37] and in the Irish Singles Chart it remained at number one for eight weeks.^[38] It reached number one in the singles charts of New Zealand, Australia, France, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Austria, Canada and the United States. "Bleeding Love" won The Record of the Year in December 2007.^[39] In February 2008, "Bleeding Love" entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 85 and then went on to peak at number one for four non-consecutive weeks. The song became the first track by a UK female to reach number one since Kim Wilde's "You Keep Me Hangin' On" in 1987.^[40] Lewis's third single, a double A-side featuring "Better in Time" and "Footprints in the Sand", was released in the United Kingdom in March 2008, in aid of Sport Relief, and she visited South Africa for the charity.^[41] The single reached a peak of number two in the UK singles chart selling over 40,000 copies in its first week of physical release. "Better in Time" was released as Lewis's second single in the US, where it peaked at number 11 in the Billboard Hot 100.^[42] "Forgive Me" was released as Lewis's fifth single in November 2008; it reached number five in the UK.^[43] "Run" was released as a download-only single in the UK, reaching number one, and becoming the UK's fastest-selling download-only single with 69,244 copies sold in two days.^[44] Lewis's last single from Spirit, "I Will Be", was released in January 2009,^[45] only in North America; it peaked at number 66 on the Billboard Hot 100. In August 2008, she performed "Whole Lotta Love" with guitarist Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin at the 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in Beijing, representing the handover to London as the host of the 2012 Summer Olympics.^[46] In September 2008, she joined several female singers to perform a single for the anti-cancer campaign Stand Up to Cancer. The single, titled "Just Stand Up!", was performed live during the one-hour telethon that aired on all major US television networks.^[47] Lewis received three nominations for the 51st Grammy Awards in December 2008. "Bleeding Love" was nominated for Record of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Spirit was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album. She was nominated for four BRIT Awards, in the categories British Female Solo Artist, British Breakthrough Act, British Album for Spirit, and British Single for "Bleeding Love",^[48] but despite being the favourite to win the most awards, she received none.^[49] She won two awards at the 2008 MOBO Awards: Best Album for Spirit and Best Video for "Bleeding Love".^[50] In December 2008 Lewis was named 'Top New Artist' by Billboard magazine.^[51]

[edit] 2009–10: Echo and The Labyrinth

Lewis performing on The Labyrinth tour in 2010

Lewis's second album, Echo, was given a worldwide release in November 2009.^[52] Production took place throughout 2009, including work with Ryan Tedder,^[53] Justin Timberlake,^[54] Max Martin,^[55] Arnthor Birgisson,^[56] Kevin Rudolf,^[57] and John Shanks.^[58] It was recorded in Los Angeles and took nine months to produce.^[59] Lewis described the album as "more guitar-driven" compared to Spirit.^[60] Lewis performed her first full UK show at the Hackney Empire in London on 2 November 2009, performing songs from Spirit and Echo.^[61][62] Echo reached number one in the UK Albums Chart and the top ten of Austria, Ireland and Switzerland.^[63] Despite previous attempts from Lewis's lawyers to ban the release of Best Kept Secret by UEG Music, claiming that the singer had not given her consent, the album was released in January 2009 when the label insisted it owned the rights to the music and Lewis would receive a 50% share of the album's profits. However, a television advert for the album was banned by the Advertising Standards Authority, who said in a statement: "We considered that the claim 'Leona Lewis's new album' misleadingly implied it was the singer's latest recording rather than a new CD of tracks recorded some years ago."^[64] The album was released to iTunes in standard and deluxe editions, and two EPs, "Private Party" and "Dip Down"/"Joy", were released in September 2009. The first single released from Echo was "Happy", which was written by Lewis, Tedder and Evan Bogart and produced by Tedder.^[65] The single was released on 15 September 2009,^[66][67] peaking at number two in the UK,^[68] and reaching the top ten in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Japan and Switzerland.^[69] Lewis also recorded the theme song for the 2009 science fiction film Avatar, directed by James Cameron.^[70] The song, "I See You (Theme from Avatar)", was written by James Horner and Simon Franglen. It was nominated for Best Original Song at the 67th Golden Globe Awards.^[71] In January 2010, Lewis provided vocals on a cover of "Everybody Hurts", released to help raise money for victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.^[72] The second single from Echo, "I Got You", was released in February 2010. The song "My Hands" was used as the theme song for Final Fantasy XIII^[73] In April 2010, she featured on a duet with Italian singer Biagio Antonacci, called "Inaspettata (Unexpected)", from his album Inaspettata.^[74] They performed the song on the Italian TV show Io Canto on 22 October 2010.^[75] Lewis performed a 13-piece set list at the Rock in Rio festival in Lisbon, Portugal, on 22 May 2010, including songs from Spirit and Echo.^[76] Her first tour, titled The Labyrinth^[77] supporting Spirit and Echo, started in May 2010,^[78] with a theme based on the film Labyrinth.^[79] Lewis was scheduled to tour North America from July to August 2010 supporting Christina Aguilera's Bionic Tour,^[80] however, Aguilera cancelled the tour, leaving Lewis's plans unknown.^[81] A DVD of the tour, along with a ten-track CD, was released with the title The Labyrinth Tour Live from The O2 on 29 November 2010.^[82]